WOODLAND, CA - Sakata Seed America has a new leader stepping up to bat as it has announced that Bill McCarthy will be taking on his new role as Associate Director of Research and Development.
“Throughout my career, I have been passionate about creating environmentally friendly products that reduce pesticide use for growers. Sakata Seed has a vision of sustainability and innovation that I have always admired. I am excited to return to Sakata, where my career began, and to work with such a talented and passionate staff to develop more market-leading products together,” explained McCarthy.
A familiar face at Sakata, McCarthy began his career with the company 27 years ago, and has since spent 22 years working as a plant breeder for Seminis, Monsanto, and Bayer.
He has established himself as a well-known plant breeder across the industry, and is now using his expertise to help expand Sakata.
“Innovation and expansion in sustainable, responsible breeding is paramount at Sakata,” stated Dave Armstrong, President and CEO. “The Associate Director of Research and Development is a new role at Sakata Seed America, reporting to Jeff Zischke, Senior Director of R&D, and based out of our state-of-the-art Woodland Innovation Center. We welcome Bill back to our team and look forward to seeing what he brings to this opportunity.”
McCarthy will be working alongside Jeff Zischke, Senior Director of Research and Development, as the two, along with their team, continue to develop new products for the seed company.
Zischke speaks very highly of McCarthy, noting that he is largely responsible for reimagining the sweet pepper category.
“Bill changed the sweet pepper industry with the introduction of high-yielding and highly disease resistant products that have dominated the market in open field bell peppers for over a decade,” said Zischke. “This includes Double Up, one of four successful pepper products that Bill created for Sakata, which we are still selling today. I am thrilled to have Bill join Sakata as we continue to develop a wide array of genetics in pursuit of enticing products for both growers and consumers. Bill will influence investment, direction, and focus of Sakata’s breeding programs as well as providing leadership to our talented staff.”
With so much experience being brought to the table, we wish Bill luck as he works to continue building Sakata’s program and look forward to seeing what innovations will come from this new partnership.
